CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte baseball team completed the second half of a home-and home series with the University of Mount Olive on Wednesday, knocking off the second-ranked Trojans by an 8-4 score at The Tuckaseegee Dream Fields.
 
The Royals got three no-hit innings from starter Drew Meschede who struck out four in his first start of the season. Meschede exited the game with a 3-1 lead after the Royals scored three runs on three hits in the opening inning, including and RBI double from Carter Foster and an RBI single from Drake Harris.
 
An RBI single from Dom Ford in the fourth moved the Royals in front by a 4-1 score until the Trojans rallied for three runs on no hits and two Queens fielding errors to even the score at 4-all in the top of the fifth. Riley Cheek led off the home half of the sixth inning with a double to right center and later scored the go-ahead run on an RBI single from Nick Melton.
 
Relievers Caleb Staley, Garrett Crisp, Landen Wright, Jordan Briones and Chris Ragosta held the Trojans scoreless for the final four innings of play to preserve the win. The Royals added three insurance runs in the in the seventh, as Alex Sexton, Foster and Harris each recorded an RBI in the frame.
 
Crisp got his first career win after a perfect 2/3 of an inning as the Royals used eight different arms to keep the potent Mount Olive offense in check. The Trojan were able to muster just three hits and all four runs were unearned on the day as the Queens pitching staff racked up 10 total strikeouts.
 
Foster, Ford, Harris, Sexton and Anthony Orta each had multi-hit games and Mason Pickard was 1-for-2 with a triple and a walk in the win.
 
Queens returns to action this weekend when the team travels to Greeneville, Tennessee for a four-game South Atlantic Conference series with the Pioneers of Tusculum University on Saturday and Sunday.